tower



(No Model.) 2 SheetsSheeN 1.

B. TOWER. APPARATUS FOR MAINTAINING'A CONSTANT PLANE IN FLOATINGVESSELS.

Patented Dec. 8, .1891.

2Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

B. TOWER. APPARATUS FOR MAINTAINING A GONSTANT PLANE IN FLOATING VESSELSNo. 464,806. Patented Dec. "811 91.

Bn'AUoH'AM-r TOWER, or-

APPARATUS FOR MAINTAINING A CON PATENT OFFICE.

WESTMINSTER, ENGLAND.

smurrt'mt' m FLOATING VESSELS.

'srncmea'non forming pen. of teeters Patent No. 464,806, dated December8, 1891 who. eria1No.372,089. on

kpplloation filed November 20,

Trance October 16, 1890, No. 208,905, and in Italy KovemhbrilB, .1890,LVI, 56.

Toall whom it'fntay concern."

lie it known that I, BEAUCHAMP TOWER, a citizen of: England, residingatfNos5 Queen Anues Gate, Westminsten'in the county of Middlesex,England, have invented new and useful Improvements in Apparatus, forMaintaining a Constant Planein a FloatingVessel, (for which I haveobtained patents in Great Britain, No, 20,220, dated December 16, 1889;in France, No. 208,905, dated October 16, 1890, and in. Italy, Vol. LVI,56, dated November 12, 1890,) of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object to improve the apparatus formaintaining a constant plane in a; floating vessel, for which Letterslgtsgem No.*366,438 were-issued to me July 12,

. To such 'ehd" myinvention consists in the features of construction andthe combination or arrangement of devices hereinafter described andclaim'ed,reference being made to theaccompanying drawings, in which--Figure 1 is a vertical central sectional view of suflicient of theapparatus to enable my present invention to. be understood. Fig. 2

is a plan, and Fig. 3 an elevation, partly in section,showing one of theimprovements ac-' cording to my present invention, Fig. 4 is a planshowing a gun mounted on the apparatus. Fig. 5 is an. elevation, partlyin section, showing the mounting of the gun and means, according to mypresent invention, of correcting slight errors in its elevation. Fig. 6is a part plan showing the correcting appliance.

As shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the heavy reaction-wheel A, mounted on aspherical hollow pivot B, is provided with horizontal channels 0.

To the vessel coiitaining the reaction-wheel A are fixed the fourhydrauliceylinders F,

each fitted with a plunger, and two of these plunger-s are linked to oneof the gimbals G and the other two are linked to the remaining gimbal G,all in such manner that the' vessel is free to oscillate as described inmy patent before alluded to.

parts of the cylinders F the channels or pipes E communicate through ahead E with orifices I), located on the under side of the head Eimmediately above the nozzle D, which From the upper model.) retained inEngland December 16,1889,

'proj ects u pwardl from the reaction-wheel pipe 1, Fig. 1, flowsthroughthe spherical hollow bearing B and partly to thechannels' c andpartly to the nozzle Din the line the reaction -wheel L is caused torevolve rapidly by the action of the water issuing from its horizontalchannels 0, its axis tends to remain permanent in position even whenforceis applied to. alter it. As long as the axis 'of the vesselcontaining the reactionsuch wheel the, jet from the nozzle D actsequallyon the water. in the orificesb, thereby producing equal pressurein;the four the vessel containing the wheel move a little out ofalignment with the axis of such wheel, then one or the other of theorifices b will receive more of the jet from thenozzle D than the otherorifices, and theflpressure in that one of the cylinders F with whichthat orifice communicates will be increased, causing its plunger to tendto move outward, and thus imposing a strain on the {that plunger islinked. This excess of force on one of the gimhal-arms reacts on thevessel, causing it to recover its normal position and bringing itsaxisinto coiucidence wit-h the axis of the reaction-wheel A. Consevolves theaxis of the vessel is main tained in a permanent .position. By thismeans, the axis of the reaction-wheel A remaining con- =porm and other Gtend to deviate from the axis of the wheel A more of the jet from thenozzle'D would be directed into one of the channels or pipes E than intothe others, thus creating a greater 'pressure'in one of the hydraulicylindersF and must such depression of that'cylinder as to correct thedeviation. I

stantially the same as described and shown in my Letters Patenthereinbefore referred to, andin order to improve such apparatus andmaintain constancy in .the direction of the axis of the reaction-wheelA, I arrange the of'the axis of the reaction-wheel A. While hydrauliccylinders F. Should the axis of gimb'al-arm to which quently as long asthe reaction-wheel A re-- The apparatus thus far described, is sub-' Thewater under pressure. entering. by the a wheel remains coincident withthe axis of stant in direction, should the axis of the platparts carriedby the gimbals center of the spherical bearing ll to be as nearly aspossible coincident with the center of gravity of the wheel A, and I-mount on the hydraulic eylindm's lfour bell-crank lcvers having theirvertical arms loaded by equal weights J and having'on their horizonttilarms rollers K, which bear on the upper surface of the wheel A. The bellcranks might, be arranged at a lowerlevel ith their rollers bearingagainst the under surface of the wheel A. liy tllcau'lluu of the pendulous weights J any tendency of the wheel A to deviate from truehorizontality of its upper or under surface is at once corrected. When agun II is mounted on trunnions on the apparatus, as shown in Fig. 4, Iapply to it means of correcting slight errors in elevation, as shown inFigs. 5 and 6. Over the jet-orifice of the pipe I), I fix a guard L,having a round hole through its middle and sloping down to its outeredge. The water from the jet-pipe 1) passes through the central hole ofthe guard L, and the water which is dashed back is deflected by theborder of the guard L, so as to take a course outward clear of the wheelA, the action of which might be more or less interfered with by thewater dashing on it.

Besides the four quadrantal orifices 0f the channels E, leading to thefour hydraulic cylinders F, I provide two rectangular orifices andchannels M N from the head E, Fig. 5, leading, respectively, to thelower and upper ends of a hydraulic cylinder 0. This cylinder is 'fittedwith a piston I, whichtis maintained in middle position between twosprings. To the piston-rod is connected by a spherical joint asocket-nut Q for the elerating-screw R of the gun ll. The gun being onceset to the desired elevation, is maintained without change of elevationbyj the action of the piston 1, subject to excess of pressure on the oneside or the other, resulting from direction of the jet more into the oneof the channels M N than into the other.' If, for instance, the breechof the gun descended a little, the channel M would receive more of thejet from the pipe D than the channel N. The piston I, being thereforepressed more on its under than on its upper side, would rise a little,raising the breech; and, in like manner, if the breech rose alittle theexcess of pressure would be on the upper side of the piston I, causingthe breech to descend.

The correcting appliance shown in Figs. 5

and t; as applied to maintain constant position of the longitudinal axisof a gun, might be applied also in a plane at right angles to the planeof that axis in cases where a platform requires to be kept alwaysparallel to one plane, the platform being in this case mounted ongimbals.

llaving thus described the nature of this invention and the best means Iknow of carrying the same into practical cll'eotgd elaim---.

1. In anapparatus for maintaining a constant plane in a floating vessel,the combination, with the reaction-wheel mounted on a spherical bearinghaving its center coincident with the center ofgravityof the wheel. ofbell-cranks provided with pend ulous weights and having rollers actingagainst the surface of the reactiomwheel, substantially as and for thepurpose described.

2. In an apparatus for maintaining a constant plane in a floatingvessel, the combination, with the cylinders, the plungers arranged inthe cylinders, the gimbals connected with the plungers, thereaction-wheel, the jet-pipe, and channels leading to the cylinders, ofthe guard L, having a central oritice and arranged over thedelivery-mouth of the jet-pipe, sub stantially as described.

3. In an apparatus for maintaining a constantplane in a floating vessel,the combination, wit-h the reaction-wheel, the jet-pipe at, the centerthereof, the cylinders, the channels leading from the cylinders topoints over the jet-pipe, the plungers arranged int-he cylinders, andthe gimbals connected with the plungers, of the subsidiary cylinder 0,containing a piston P, and the supplementary channels MN, leading frompoints above the jet-pipe to the subsidiary cylinder, substantially asdescribed.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in thepresence of two'subscribing witnesses, this 3d day of N0 veinber, A. D.1890. i 4

vBEAUCHAMP TOWER. \Vitnesses: I l l OLIVER IMRAY, 5 i Patmtgerd, 28Southampton B u-ildings, Lon

don, O. i

J No. P. M. MILLARD,

Clerk to Messrs. Abel &' Imrdy, Consulting Engineers and Pdte'ntAge'hts, 28 Southampton Buildings, London,

